By Desmond Davies
London, Sept 6, GNA – The Russian private military contractor (PMC), the Wagner Group, has been declared a terrorist organisation by the British government.
A draft proscription order was laid in the UK Parliament on, Wednesday, by Home Secretary Suella Braverman, making it illegal to support the Russian PMC and punishable by up to 14 years in jail.
The UK government said the Wagner Group was a proxy military force of Vladimir Putins Russia, which was operating across the globe.
“Wagner has operated in the pursuit of Russias foreign policy objectives and the objectives of host governments who have contracted Wagners services, Ms Braverman said.
Once agreed by Parliament, the order will come into force on September 13, making it a criminal offence to “belong to, encourage support for, assist or use the logo” of the Group.
Wagner’s assets can also be categorised as terrorist property and would be seized, the announcement said.
Ms Braverman said the Group’s “operations in Ukraine, the Middle East and Africa are a threat to global security”.
She added: “Wagner Group is a Russian private military company, which has acted as a proxy military force….
“Founded in 2014, Wagner has operated in a series of countries, including most notably Ukraine, Syria, the Central African Republic, Sudan, Libya, Mozambique and Mali.
“Wagner is a violent and destructive organisation, which has acted as a military tool…
““They are terrorists, plain and simple and this proscription order makes that clear in UK law.
“Wagner has been involved in looting, torture and barbarous murders, the Home Secretary said.
Security Minister Tom Tugendhat said the UK “condemns Wagners campaign of corruption and bloodshed on the African continent, which has been repeatedly linked to human rights violations”.
The UK government said that despite “the alleged death of its leadership, the threat from Wagner Group continues to endure”.
It added that the proscription of the Group was also a response to requests made by Ukraines President Zelenskyy who had called for the group to be treated as a terrorist organisation.
The UK included the Group in a first wave of sanctions against Russia in early 2022, and more recently sanctioned an additional 13 individuals and businesses linked to the actions of the Group in July this year.
The Wagner Group will become the 79th organisation to be proscribed in the UK.
Other groups already proscribed include al-Qaeda, ISIS and Hezbollah.
GNA